[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 118 (Wednesday, June 18, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34720-34721]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-13683]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP95-35-001]


EcoEl[eacute]ctrica, L.P.; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Ecoel[eacute]ctrica Terminal 
Modification Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

June 11, 2008.
    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) that will 
discuss the potential environmental impacts of the EcoEl[eacute]ctrica 
Terminal Modification Project (Project) involving construction and 
operation of natural gas pipeline facilities by EcoEl[eacute]ctrica, 
L.P. (EcoEl[eacute]ctrica) in Pe[ntilde]uelas, Puerto Rico. The EA will 
be used by the Commission in its decision-making process to determine 
whether the project is in the public convenience and necessity.
    This notice announces the opening of the scoping process the 
Commission will use to gather input from the public and interested 
agencies on the project. Your input will help determine which issues 
need to be evaluated in the EA. Please note that the scoping period 
will close on July 11, 2008. Details on how to submit comments are 
provided in the Public Participation section of this notice.
    This notice is being sent to affected landowners; federal, state, 
and local government agencies; elected officials; other interested 
parties; and newspapers. State and local government representatives are 
asked to notify their constituents of this proposed project and to 
encourage them to comment on their areas of concern.
    A fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled ``An Interstate Natural 
Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I Need To Know?'' addresses a number 
of typically asked questions, including the use of eminent domain and 
how to participate in the Commission's proceedings. It is available for 
viewing on the FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov).

Summary of the Proposed Project

    EcoEl[eacute]ctrica's Terminal Modification Project would provide 
up to 186 million cubic feet per day of natural gas to the Puerto Rico 
Electric Power Authority (PREPA). To accomplish this, 
EcoEl[eacute]ctrica proposes to:
     Utilize a previously constructed natural gas pipeline at 
the existing EcoEl[eacute]ctrica liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal 
that extends to the facility fence line where it would interconnect 
with PREPA's facilities; and
     Construct two additional vertical shell and tube heat 
exchanger vaporizers within its existing 36-acre site.
    Other required facilities associated with the vaporizers include:
     Two fixed speed, in-tank LNG sendout pumps (one 
operational, one in-tank spare);
     Three seawater heat exchangers (plate and frame type, one 
operational, and two spare);
     Three water/glycol circulation pumps (one operational, two 
spare);
     One water/glycol expansion tank at 1,800 gallons;
     One seawater supply pump (warehouse spare) at 6,000 
gallons per minute; and
     Three seawater circulation pumps (one operational, two 
spare).
    All construction would take place within the existing LNG facility 
fence lines. These modifications would increase LNG ship traffic by one 
ship per month. The general location of the proposed facilities is 
shown in appendix 1.\1\
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    \1\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies of all appendices are 
available on the Commission's Web site (http://www.fer.gov) at the 
``eLibrary'' link or from the Commission's Public Reference Room, 
888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 502-8371. 
For instructions on connecting to eLibrary, refer to the 
``Additional Information'' section of this notice. Copies of the 
appendices were sent to all those receiving this notice in the mail. 
Requests for detailed maps of the proposed facilities should be made 
directly to EcoEl[eacute]ctrica.
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Land Requirements for Construction

    The construction of the proposed Terminal Modification Project 
would be entirely within previously disturbed and currently maintained 
portions of the existing EcoEl[eacute]ctrica LNG terminal site. 
Construction of the Project would affect a total of 0.64 acre, of which 
0.12 acre would be permanently changed with the installation of the new 
equipment. Following construction, 0.52 acre would be restored to pre-
construction condition. No clearing of vegetation would be required for 
the Project.

The EA Process

    We \2\ are preparing this EA to comply with the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), which requires the Commission 
to take into account the environmental impact that could result if it 
authorizes EcoEl[eacute]ctrica's proposal. By this notice, we are also 
asking federal, state, and local agencies with jurisdiction and/or 
special expertise with respect to environmental issues to formally 
cooperate with us in the preparation of the EA. Agencies that would 
like to request cooperating status should follow the instructions for 
filing comments provided below.
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    \2\ ``We'', ``us'', and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the FERC's Office of Energy Projects.
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    NEPA also requires the FERC to discover and address concerns the 
public may have about proposals. This process is referred to as 
``scoping.'' The main goal of the scoping process is to focus the 
analysis in the EA on important environmental issues. By this Notice, 
we are requesting public comments on the scope of the issues to address 
in the EA. All comments received are considered during the preparation 
of the EA.
    The EA will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the 
construction and operation of the proposed project under these general 
headings:
     Geology and soils
     Land use and visual quality
     Cultural resources
     Vegetation and wildlife (including threatened and 
endangered species)
     Air quality and noise
     Reliability and safety
    We will also evaluate possible alternatives to the proposed project 
or portions of the project, where necessary, and make recommendations 
on how to lessen or avoid impacts on the various resource areas.
    Our independent analysis of the issues will be presented in the EA. 
Depending on the comments received during the scoping process, the EA 
may be published and mailed to federal, state, and local agencies; 
public interest groups; interested individuals; affected landowners; 
local libraries and newspapers; and the Commission's official service 
list for this proceeding. A comment period will be allotted for review 
if the EA is published. We will consider all comments on the EA before 
we make our recommendations to the Commission.
    To ensure your comments are considered, please carefully follow the

[[Page 34721]]

instructions in the Public Participation section below.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the project. By becoming a commentor, your 
concerns will be addressed in the EA and considered by the Commission. 
You should focus on the potential environmental effects of the 
proposal, alternatives to the proposal, and measures to avoid or lessen 
environmental impact. The more specific your comments, the more useful 
they will be. Please carefully follow these instructions to ensure that 
your comments are received in time and properly recorded:
     Send an original and two copies of your letter to: 
Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 
First St., NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426;
     Label one copy of the comments for the attention of Gas 
Branch 1, PJ-11.1;
     Reference Docket No. CP95-35-001; and
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before July 11, 2008.
    Please note that the Commission strongly encourages electronic 
filing of any comments. See Title 18 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
(CFR), Part 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions on the 
Commission's Internet Web site at http://www.ferc.gov under the link to 
``Documents and Filings'' and ``eFiling.'' eFiling is a file attachment 
process and requires that you prepare your submission in the same 
manner as you would if filing on paper, and save it to a file on your 
computer's hard drive. New eFiling users must first create an account 
by clicking on ``Sign up'' or ``eRegister.'' You will be asked to 
select the type of filing you are making. This filing is considered a 
``Comment on Filing.'' In addition, there is a ``Quick Comment'' option 
available, which is an easy method for interested persons to submit 
text only comments on a project. The Quick-Comment User Guide can be 
viewed at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling/quick-comment-guide.pdf. Quick Comment does not require a FERC eRegistration account; 
however, you will be asked to provide a valid e-mail address. All 
comments submitted under either eFiling or the Quick Comment option are 
placed in the public record for the specified docket. If you want to be 
kept on our environmental mailing list, you must provide an address 
along with your comment.

Becoming an Intervenor

    In addition to involvement in the scoping process, you may want to 
become an official party to the proceeding known as an ``intervenor.'' 
Intervenors play a more formal role in the Commission's process. Among 
other things, intervenors have the right to receive copies of case-
related Commission documents and filings by other intervenors. 
Likewise, each intervenor must send one electronic copy (using the 
Commission's eFiling system) or 14 paper copies of its filings to the 
Secretary of the Commission and must send a copy of its filings to all 
other parties on the Commission's service list for this proceeding. If 
you want to become an intervenor, you must file a motion to intervene 
according to Rule 214 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and 
Procedure (18 CFR 385.214) (see appendix 2).\3\ Only intervenors have 
the right to seek rehearing of the Commission's decision.
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    \3\ Interventions may also be filed electronically via the 
Internet in lieu of paper. See the previous discussion on filing 
comments electronically.
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    Affected landowners and parties with environmental concerns may be 
granted intervenor status upon showing good cause by stating that they 
have a clear and direct interest in this proceeding which would not be 
adequately represented by any other parties. You do not need intervenor 
status to have your environmental comments considered.

Environmental Mailing List

    As described above, we may mail the EA for comment. If you are 
interested in receiving an EA for review and/or comment, please return 
the Environmental Mailing List Mailer (appendix 3). If you do not 
return the Environmental Mailing List Mailer, you will be taken off the 
mailing list. All individuals who provide written comments will remain 
on our environmental mailing list for this project.

Additional Information

    Additional information about the project is available from the 
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at 1-866-208-FERC or on the 
FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov) using the ``eLibrary'' 
link. Click on the eLibrary link, then on ``General Search'' and enter 
the docket number excluding the last three digits in the Docket Number 
field. Be sure you have selected an appropriate date range. For 
assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at 
[email protected] or toll free at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY, 
contact (202) 502-8659. The eLibrary link also provides access to the 
texts of formal documents issued by the Commission, such as orders, 
notices, and rulemakings.
    In addition, the Commission now offers a free service called 
eSubscription which allows you to keep track of all formal issuances 
and submittals in specific dockets. This can reduce the amount of time 
you spend researching proceedings by automatically providing you with 
notification of these filings, document summaries and direct links to 
the documents. Go to http://www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.
    Finally, any public meetings or site visits will be posted on the 
Commission's calendar located at http://www.ferc.gov/EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along with other related information.

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E8-13683 Filed 6-17-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P